Hello :) (New Here)

My name is Eddie and I am new to this forum . This is my first post on here and since I am looking to get into a 996 I thought it would be appropriate to see what the opinions are of the vets around these threads. I have very little Porsche experience aside from the research I've done within the past year. I've already went to see a few different 996's and this one really stands out to me as far as int/ext options. Its a 99 C4 911 with about 83k miles on the clock, I have the carfax for it and it has had 6 owners within its lifetime and the last owner was about 1 year and 3 months in before he upgraded to a newer Porsche 911 (according to salesman). I am Ok with the mileage so long as the PPI comes back clean but what do you guys think about the 6 owners its had? Also at one point in the carfax it was sold at auction and 2000 miles later it had its 4th owner. The car itself in person looks very well maintained, the interior is very clean as opposed to others I've seen. I going back to test drive on saturday as I did not have the time yesterday so I cannot comment on how it drives. Would any of you have red flags raised at this deal? Is there anything I should be cautious about? If needed I can also post the carfax so you get a better idea. http://www.luxcarschicago.com/web/us...nois/18687481/

Welcome, That place is 5 minutes from me. They have many high end cars, but just like any used car place, cant help but be worried about dealing with greasy hair used car salesmen. M&I imports on 41 is the same owners btw. Do take it to P Exchange or Loeber to get it checked out. Do not trust these guys. I don't think that 6 owners for such a car is too bad, the car does have a few years on it and not many people keep these for a long time. Although you will find many people on this site that do, there are many others that never sign up to these boards that don't keep these cars longer than 2 years. Do not make any type of deal with them until Dealer looks at the car. If for some reason you cant take it to a P dealer, try Speedriven in Palatine. although they are primarily Mercedes, they know a Porsche as well.

Thank you for your reply! I am really considering this car as a summer daily and am planning to keep it for a long time. Do you see any problems that might come up maintenance wise with this many miles in the next year or two? Also I was thinking of getting the PPI done at the Midwest Eurosport in Bensenville because they are very close to me and I have heard they do great work there. Any experience with them?

Mine needed a clutch around that time and also did the IMSB while in there.

hi dub - your link doesn't work... I would try to buy from a private owner - the auction history doesn't look good... coupled with being on a car lot - I would guess a 996 w 83k running through an auction goes for a few grand below wholesale book value... the car quite possibly had some issue /s if it went thru auction... or if the pervious owner really did buy a new P, many Porsche dealers won't put hi mileage trade-ins on their lot because that they cannot CPO, the number of owners doesn't scare me... I would try to narrow your search to private sales... the info gained from visiting with an owner driver is key info, also I believe private sales save a couple of grand$$.. also you can pay for the car partially in cash and save on sales tax - some states its as high 6%... say you buy for 20k$ - make the bill of sale for 10k - saving 600$ in sales tax.. go private -

I would go private but I don't have the full amount of cash plus I wanted to finance just in case something were to happen I could have the resources to repair the damage. The car was at the auction 10 months after the 4 owner bought it, then it went on to its 5th and 6th owner and gained about 20k miles. There were lots of PPIs and maintenance inspections done throughout the life of this car last one being down about 5k miles ago but was in 2012... http://www.luxcarschicago.com/web/us...nois/18687481/

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2 quick comments... You can finance private party deals as well. Plenty of banks will do that. We have insurance through state farm, and they also will do car loans at competitive rates. Needing to finance doesnt mean you have to go through a dealer. Also, midwest eurosport is good. Small shop, but great, thorough guys. They have done some work on my car, including ln retrofit.

no heated seats in Chicago? that's a pretty base Carrera have you seen this? http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/cto/4911045315.html

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It doesn't really work that way around here. Taxes on used cars go by brackets and year. If DMV suspects that you are under-reporting, they will come after you and make you prove it. I got my car for a great deal at the time and DMV didn't believe it. I had to fax them KBB printout along with 2 appraisals from car dealers. They were trying to squeeze more money out of me. Also if you live in Crook County, thanks to Perwinkel, a law got passed a few years ago that hardly no one knows about. This law charges you $250 for any private party auto sales transactions if you're car is registered in Crook County. This applies even if you bought a used clunker at say $1k. 25% for "non retailer use tax", LOL. Definitely all crooks... As for the car that OP is looking at, it looks to have been modded. Not sure if that changes your decision one way or another for better or for worse...

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crook county lol.... yes it isn't easy... I had proof of my purchase 10k, the dmv had its own calculator and put the value at $12.6k, I didn't say a word, just paid the fees... good point on mods... when I chose mine... I wanted one unmolested... and found a 99 that had 3 previous owners - the first had the car for 12 years.. but it seems like the car in the op looks priced right at 19k...

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understood... its tuff getting finance.. many banks don't finance cars over 5y old, credit unions maybe able to help - good luck ! offer them 17k

I did see that craigslist post, along with about every other within the major US cities , I just wanted to stay away from private deals because I know nothing about the process of getting a loan without a dealership (I've only had one car). I also knew from looking at that porsche in person that the taillights have been modded but everything else seemed pretty stock which doesnt bother me much, I modded my car heavily. Which bank do you guys think would be most helpful with a 24 y/o and 1 car payed off on his credit history? (Bank of america for previous loan)

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Just a few of the mods I can see from the photos: -LED rear taillights. -Front marker lights changed to clear -HVAC controls moved down and cupholders installed -Center console and horse collar repainted/replaced None of these are really either positives or negatives to me as they seem tasteful and appropriate. Also, it is not uncommon for these cars to have been through an auto auction or two early on in their life. Its the nature of this type and value of car and it shouldn't be a red flag, especially if the auction was several years prior. And yes, it is sometimes better to buy from a private owner as you can better judge the last owner of the car, but that does not give you any knowledge of the owners prior to that.

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my bofa doesn't finance anything older than 5years... they maybe able to help if you can take a 2nd on your house... forget about big banks.. try credit unions - although they also don't like to finance older cars... I would see what the dealer can offer you for finance- they'll prob want at least 2k down payment -

What would a credit union require in order to approve the loan for lets say 20k? or is that even not an option at my age and credit status (about 695ish)

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that would be challenging for cu, get the finance guru at the car lot to shop a loan for you.. good luck

Every Bank and Credit Union will have their own requirements, you will never know until you apply. if you have a paid off loan with BOA then go back to them and see if they will take your repeat business, I've had couple of loans and re-fi with them, good bank but my cars were not that old. Also look in to Baxter credit union, sometimes they have good rates. All will require a VIN from the car you want to buy and approximate amount you want to finance. Once you apply they will tell you if they are willing to give you finance. Some will tell you upfront that the car needs to be at most X years old ... Most likely if you are doing a private sale they will give you a slightly higher rate than financing through dealer. But sometimes its worth it. I personally would be hesitant about buying a car from them, or any dealership of such size. Just because there is a greater chance of something being fishy. However, if you have a good PPI and well documented history......

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Forgot SS door sills and pedals.

This car looks beautiful. I love the color combo and I am a huge fan of the turbo twist wheels unlike many on this forum. My advice would be to just focus on the maintenance records and understand what has been done recently, and the expense of doing what hasn't been done. Listen to your ppi mechanic and understand what he says the car needs as well. Then adjust your purchase price accordingly!

I originally wanted white ext and black interior but this black /beige combo has really grown on me, Its my top choice as of now mainly because white is so hard to find haha As for records I only have what carfax gives me, I do not have any other records for maintenance. Im curious to see what the PPI comes up with. How long does PPI usually take?

I didn't see this before on the website but you guys can actually look at the carfax yourself if you haven't already its on the dealers site... http://www.luxcarschicago.com/web/us...nois/18687481/

That's a sharp looking car. Best of luck with the deal. If the PPI comes back good, forget about how many owners have owned it. If it's what you want and they drop a couple of thousand off the deal then think yourself a lucky guy. It's a 99 and that goes a long way in my book for obvious reasons. If you are into DIY work, I would still set aside a couple of grand for PM because you don't have records, ie, brake rotars and pads, all fluids, maybe engine mounts and serpentine belt, coolant pump and thermo, spark plugs and tubes, little odds and sods like that. Good luck.

So I have the test drive scheduled tomorow morning with the dealership, I also called a Porsche dealership and scheduled a PPI to be done tomorow afternoon right after the test drive. Im hoping all goes well with the PPI Is there anything specific I should watch/listen for while driving? When checking under the hood??

I would suggest you get qualified for the loan prior to paying for a PPI - good luck !

So run the numbers and see what happens and before signing then go to PPI? Sounds like a smart idea, thank you sir!

Do you have a budget set aside for any future maintenance/repairs? If you're financing something like this from a Dealer that got it from an auction with unknown history or paperwork and is being sold "as-is", I would either try to get some kind of warranty out of them, especially if you don't know how to work on your own car or have any budget set aside for maintenance/repairs. It just seems like risky proposition. There's nothing worse than paying a car note on a car you might not be able to use or one where you'll have to pour some money into it. If you're also financing it from the dealer, chances are you are also going to be paying higher interest amt.

If you're considering trying a credit union take a look at Pen Fed, they always have super low rates and finance older used cars like ours. Customer service is excellent. No affiliation, just a happy customer.

I would say get a PPI at an indie shop versus a dealer

I have quite a bit of experience around a car in general, I've never done anything with a Porsche but my experience on my Volkswagen is very thorough, I am somewhat of a DIY type of guy so besides the pricing of parts the maintenance wont scare me off that much. For now I will see what the numbers look like at the dealer first and go from there but I def will look into this Pen Fed. I really want an indy shop to do the test but my work schedule only allows me to have it done on a Saturday and I have not found a shop open on weekends yet besides a dealership. Could anyone recommend one open saturdays in chicago?

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I'd also suggest driving several diff 911s to get an idea of what "normal" is like. And, what ain't normal. If summer time is your goal, you need not rush. I too worry about # of owners, and posted a question about it, and got a lot of thoughtful replies. It's in the 996 subforum. Enjoy the hunt. You're asking all the right questions....T

So I went to the dealership this morning for the test drive. I got there before the salesman did so I had some time to research the car without anyone interrupting (porter gave me the key). Heres a few things I noticed. The car didnt start at first which doesnt bother me as its probably just a bad battery. The car started like normal after the jump. I tested the clutch to see where it gripped and right before it engages there was a loud chatter sound coming from the clutch which I am unsure of what it could have meant as I am unfamiliar with Porsches. Once in first the car moved forward just fine (didnt test drive just moved it to an open spot). I opened the hood and saw no leaks on the engine anywhere nor on the floor where it had been sitting. While the car was running I tried to remove the oil filler cap (orange cap) and it was very difficult. Half way open there was a loud hissing sound and oil pressure dropped from 3 to 2 on the dashboard (friend was observing) and the engine itself sounded like it was about to die so I didnt even bother removing it. I shut the car off and removed the cap and inside the walls of the plastic tube was some sort of dark red residue?? What would that indicate? Once the salesman came he took down my information for the actual test drive and right before we got in he tells me "Just so you know, because this vehicle is 15 years old, we cannot let you take it to the dealer for a PPI." once he told me that I didnt even bother with the test drive and told him to to have a nice day. On my first visit he stated "We are a small family business and have nothing to hide, take It to a dealer of your choice so long as you pay for the PPI." To which I agreed. Unfortunetly this for me was more of a red flag than anything wrong with the car itself so no way will they have my business. I want to thank you guys for being so welcoming and generous to me before I even own my first Porsche! The search continues so if anyone knows sombody with a 996 in the 20s price range thats willing to sell let me know.

Sounds like your plan if walking away is the right one....T

Yep. Those guys are a perfect example of a used car salesmen. That's why I said make sure to get PPI. I know a guy that works there and I still would not buy there. God job on doing research and walking away.

+1

Out of pure curiosity would any of you guys happen to know what the reddish dirt/residue behind the oil fill cap be? It was like a burgandy color

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My credit union gave me 1.74% two months ago for my '99 996. I have very good credit and financed at that rate for 5 years. It's nearly free money when rates are below 5%.

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Wow thats a great rate, do you have to use a mortgage as collateral? I would be happy even with 5%! I found another 911 with less miles local to me but its private seller so I will definitely look into the credit union.

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No, no collateral. But you'll typically get the best rates from credit unions, in my experience.